TfL Tube staff to wear shorts and will be given better air-con in staff rooms... as commuters swelter on London Underground during sizzling heatwave

Passengers are facing temperatures over 30C on the Underground amid a scorching heatwave in the UK
Evening Standard / eyevine
Ella Wills25 July 2018

London Underground staff will have the option to wear shorts to work during the summer months as part of a trial to keep workers cool in scorching temperatures.

A 12-week trial is under way at six stations on the Northern line as TfL works to improve station working conditions in the hot weather.

Workers will have the option to wear shorts and bosses are looking at ways to cool down workers' mess areas with "improvements" to air-conditioning. If successful shorts could become a permanent option for Tube staff.

It comes amid a sweltering heatwave that is driving up temperatures on the network - the mercury could rise as high as 36C by the end of this week.

Underground workers today called for the uniform proposals to go ahead and urged TfL bosses to ensure that their staff mess rooms are air conditioned, with chilled drinking water available, as the mercury soars well above 30C in the capital.

A spokesman for TfL told the Standard that shorts could be available for all station staff to wear from next summer, if the trial is successful.

UK heatwave

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He added that TfL is "actively looking at improvements to air conditioning units in staffrooms".

The warm weather has also sparked an outpouring of complaints from sweaty commuters using the Underground network.

Disgruntled passengers on the Central and Bakerloo lines - which TfL this week named as the hottest lines - have complained that the Tube is like a "sauna" and that they have "nearly fainted" on trains.

Meanwhile station staff are suffering in temperatures well above the European Union limit of 86F (30C) for transporting cattle.

Tubeworker Bulletin, which is written by and for Underground workers and published by Workers' Liberty, has called for station staff and cleaners who spend a lot of time at platform level to have the right to wear shorts as uniform.

Speaking to the Standard, the group said: "Tube workers such as station staff and cleaners who spend a lot of time at platform level, where it’s often hottest, face particular challenges.

"We hope management see sense and give staff the right to wear shorts, as well as looking into ensuring air conditioning and chilled drinking water in staff mess rooms."

In a series of tweets on Tuesday the group said: "Many Tube workers, such as cleaners in central London stations, will spend the majority of their shift at platform level, where temperatures are particularly high and ventilation is often poorest.

"As a minimum, we demand access to chilled water for all staff; the right for station staff to wear shorts; and proper air conditioning and ventilation in staff mess rooms. #LondonHeatwave."

The demands were backed by TSSA and the Rail, Maritime and Transport Union who urged better conditions for staff during the hot weather.

RMT general secretary Mick Cash said: “We fully support our members in their demands of London Underground in this heatwave and this is also yet another example of why we need a maximum workplace temperature and proper investment in our infrastructure to provide air conditioning throughout the tube.

"It is simply wrong that there are tighter regulations on the transportation of cattle that there are for those working on London’s transport network.”

Passengers on the Tube network have complained the Underground is like a 'sauna'
Nigel Howard

TSSA General Secretary Manuel Cortes said: “Staff on the underground are particularly affected as the temperatures in the capital continue to rise and the MET office have issued an Amber heatwave warning.

“We are asking London Underground bosses who have the benefit of working in air conditioned offices to relax dress codes and let our members come to work in shorts if they wish. This should make the heatwave a little more bearable for those whose shifts are currently spent in terribly stifled and stuffy conditions.”

Nigel Holness, Director of Network Operations for London Underground, said: “Tube station staff play a vital role in keeping our city moving, and we’re determined to make stations more comfortable working environments during the summer months.

"We are investing millions of pounds to make the Tube cooler and are constantly working on new ways to keep the temperature down.

"We have doubled the number of fans on the network since 2012 [and] have installed chiller units to pump in cold air.

“We have also started a 12-week trial on shorts as part of the uniform for station staff, and we are actively looking at improvements to air conditioning units in staffrooms.

"We also provide water at every station for our staff.”

The 12-week trial started in early July at six Northern line stations, with TfL capturing staff and customer feedback.

If the trial is successful, shorts could be available for all station staff to wear from next summer.

A TfL spokesman added that there is a fridge in every station for staff to chill drinks.

It comes as commuters in London have taken to social media to complain about the sizzling heat in the capital this week as Britain is set for the hottest week of the year so far.

Earlier this month a weather forecaster took a thermometer on the Piccadilly line and found that temperatures were as high as 39C.

One woman, known as @AllForUSophia on Twitter, wrote on Tuesday: "Almost fainted on the Central Line and was sweating out of every pore on my face."

And another man on Twitter wrote: "I've coped with saunas better than I'm coping with the @centralline."

Ziad Ramley tweeted late on Monday: "I lived in Qatar for three years. I have never experienced heat quite like the Central Line at 5:30pm on a sunny day in July."

TfL revealed earlier this week that the Bakerloo line, one of the oldest on the network, was the hottest with temperatures reaching as high as 31.04C on the line in August last year.

Parts of Britain could see temperatures rise to 36C towards the end of the week as the heatwave continues.

A respite from the heat could come by the end of the week, when thunderstorms are expected in eastern areas.

But an amber "heat health watch" warning remains in place for parts of England.

There is a 90 per cent possibility of heatwave conditions between 9am on Monday and 9am Friday in parts of England, mainly in the south and east.

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